R&D dominates Indo-Aus collaborations

Mutual cooperation between these two Asia Pacific nations can lay a strong foundation for success of the biotech sector in the region

India and Australia are collaborating with each other with more focus on research initiatives

There has been a significant increase in industry-to-academia and industry-to-industry interactions between Indian and Australian counterparts. Last five years have witnessed many steps taken by the respective industries and governments to strengthen mutually beneficial partnerships in the area of biotechnology.

In 2007, Australia's Deakin University in Victoria signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with India's Biocon for joint multidisciplinary research focused on biotechnology and bioscience. Another notable example of Indo-Australian collaborations is between Strides Arcolab and Melbourne-based Ascent Pharmahealth. Strides first invested in Ascent Pharma in 2008 and in January 2012 sold Ascent to Watson Pharma. Strides-Ascent deal could be a good case study for what Indian and Australian companies have gained from mutual collaborations.

Indian healthcare leader Zydus Cadila and Australia-based Symbion have signed an MoU for construction and operation of manufacturing facilities in India. The Indian diversified major ITC acquired Australian agri-biotech company Technico as part of its strategy to strengthen its foods business.

The clinical trial companies based in Australia seem to be much interested in utilizing the offerings of the Indian market. Lisa Nelson, deputy CEO, Nucleus Network, says, "India offers very good opportunity for clinical trial companies. We have collaborated with many big pharma companies in India such as GlaxoSmithKline, Novartis, and others. At present our India focus is more on the early phase clinical trials and healthy volunteers because of safety considerations. We are currently doing groundwork in India and are on the lookout for potential partners. Compared to China, where it takes almost 12 months, India is much better in terms of regulatory approvals. India is slowly and steadily reforming its existing structure whereas China is a closed market."